CROSS-COUNTRY ANALYSIS OF NARRATIVE DISCLOSURE PRACTICES AND STAKEHOLDER EXPECTATIONS: EVIDENCE FROM DEVELOPED AND EMERGING MARKETS
Keywords:
Narrative disclosure, stakeholder expectation, annual report, cross-national comparison, emerging economies, developed economy, corporate reporting, content analysis, non-financial disclosure, institutional contextAbstract
The use of storytelling in corporate reports is crucial in providing contextual and prospective information and non-financial data that can be utilized by stakeholders, other to the regular financial reports. However, the quality and bearing of narrative reporting in different nations vary mainly because of variance in institutional settings, stakeholder design, and regulation frameworks. This study conducts a comparative analysis of narrative disclosure practices in selected developed (e.g., UK, Australia) and emerging (e.g., India, Malaysia) markets, examining the alignment between stakeholder expectations and corporate narrative strategies. This paper establishes some of the significant variations in thematic anchorage, reporting format and user needs addressing based on content analysis of annual reports and surveys conducted on the concerned stakeholders. The results imply that whereas such prominent features as consistency, materiality and inclusiveness of stakeholders are realized in developed markets, the mechanisms of compliance-driven and symbolic disclosure are dominant in the emerging markets. Furthermore, the stakeholders' expectations will vary according to the jurisdiction based on the maturity of the economy, culture and level of control exercised. The findings are very relevant to the standard-setters, the policymakers, and multinational businesses, which plan to harmonise the reporting practices without becoming dismissive of the focus of the localised stakeholders.
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